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Friday, February 1, 2013

Sepia Saturday: The School of Love Biking

Sepia Saturday challenges
bloggers to share family history through old photographs.

This week’s Sepia Saturday photo prompt triggered the
faint memory of a drawing among the souvenirs in my mother’s box of
photos. Folded neatly in a torn envelope is a sheet of school letterhead on which SOMEONE had drawn this cartoon:

Gee But you'd look sweet on a motor bikebuilt for two

I recognize “Dooney” (or Duney) as my mother’s crazy
nickname that followed her from her high school days, but the identity of “Beverly”
remains a mystery.

Evidently her high school sweetheart was
on his way out of her dreams. Maybe with
him at Davidson College in North Carolina and Momma at Shenandoah College and Conservatory in
Dayton, Virginia, absence did NOT make the heart grow fonder. Instead, it was a case of “out of sight, out
of mind.”

So who was Beverly?
Momma had no yearbook to investigate as the school had voted to do away
with it when money was tight at the small Methodist college. While The Arrowhead, the school newspaper,
continued to provide a record of events, they bear no mention of a Beverly.

Was this Beverly?

The white sign in the background says "Conservatory"

Was one of these hunks Beverly?

Did Beverly actually draw the cartoon himself as a flirtatious
expression of a wish or of a memorable outing? Or perhaps a dorm-mate sent the cartoon to tease "Dooney" about
her not-so-secret admirer.

Whatever the back story might be, the envelope certainly
teases the imagination.

Dooney DavisGirls BarracksShenandoah Schoolof Love-Biking!

Pedal over to Sepia Saturday for more stories of love,
mystery, bicycles, and bare feet.

Funny you should say that because I think of Beverly as a girl name too. But it's unisex and quite popular at one time for males in the mountains of Virginia where Momma went to college. My brother-in-law is named Beverly (he goes by Bev), and I know several men of that generation named Bev too. But where I live, the only Beverlys are women.

This just makes me laugh. Is Beverly a last name too? Did your Mom and her friends think up secret codes for their crushes ... as in Bill is "B" for "Beverly" and John is "J" for Jolene? I hope that you find out, this mystery is very intriguing.

Maybe your Mom went on a motorcycle ride with "Bill" and her girlfriend sent her the drawing for fun? The possibilities are endless.

That cartoon drawing rocks! So cute! It's sure true with me, that if it means something special to me, I sure hang on to it. I wonderful if there may be more photos or another relative that may be able to share some light on Beverly! What a curious nickname for your mother too! The stories behind nicknames can be quite interesting too!

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About Me

My name is Wendy. About twenty years ago, I helped my mother research the Jolletts. Since retiring from teaching, I have expanded my research which I share here. When I’m not looking for my own family, I index for FamilySearch and the Greene County Historical Society.
Welcome to Jollett Etc. Please leave a comment to let me know you were here. If you have more information or believe we are related, EMAIL ME at wendymath at cox dot net